After Sarah’s sorrow is lifted by Tobiah, her father, understandably, wants to keep son-in-law #8 close at hand. The young man must eventually take his leave and return to Nineveh. I wrote an extended setting of Tobit 10:7bff, and placed it in four voices: the newlyweds and her parents. A small part:

TOBIAH: Please let me go, lest my parents lose hope.

RAGUEL: Stay, my son, remain with us here. Stay, my son.

TOBIAH: Let me return to my father and mother, they might not believe they will ever see me again.

RAGUEL: I can send word to your father, messengers with all the good news.

TOBIAH: No, I beg you: give us leave to depart. Give your blessing.

Sarah is given nothing to say in this part of the book, but having four parts was important to present, I thought. Most of this four-minute song is very simple–each character has their own two-chord sequence to which to sing. For Tobiah and Sarah their parts float between G-minor and C. For Raguel between F and B-flat. For Edna, between E-flat and A-flat. Toward the end, the parts start to overlap, the tempo of the harmonizations quicken, and it ends on a final A-flat major chord. The scene needed special work to keep clear who is speaking/singing to whom.

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About catholicsensibility

Todd lives in the Pacific Northwest, serving a Catholic parish as a lay minister.